Flames alternate captain Troy Brouwer not afraid to ruffle feathers

The Calgary Flames' Troy Brouwer (36) takes part in the warm up prior to the Flames' game against the Edmonton Oilers, at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Wednesday Oct. 12, 2016. Photo by David Bloom Photos off Oilers game for multiple writers copy in Oct. 13 editions.Bloom, David / Postmedia

Not now, in his new role as an alternate captain for the Calgary Flames.

“I don’t always say the popular thing, which has gotten me in trouble a few times in the past,” Brouwer said. “I’m that guy that people may not like when they leave the rink, at times, but they have to know that I’m always on their side and that I just want everyone to be better and the team to be better.

“So sometimes I’ll say a few things that people don’t want to hear, but somebody has to do it.”

Indeed, every team needs a guy like that.

And, to be honest, not every team has one.

“I think we’ve had that, but maybe not to the extent that we need,” assessed Flames captain Mark Giordano. “And maybe Brouw is going to bring that.”

That would be just fine by Brouwer’s new boss.

“It’s a little less prevalent in the league now than it probably was a while back — there is not always that guy that is willing to say something that maybe people don’t want to hear,” said Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan. “It’s not always warm and fuzzy, right? But you need that. Sweet isn’t sweet without a little sour. You have to temper it obviously, because you don’t want it to go the other way. But a little juice in the room, a little challenge in the room, is a good thing.

“If your team is tight and you trust each other and the guys like each other … you can do those things and those things just push the group.”

Brouwer had an ‘A’ stitched on his sweater Tuesday, a notable news item that was lost in the hoopla of Johnny Gaudreau’s arrival in Calgary after a contract stalemate, Kris Versteeg’s signing in a Battle of Alberta switcheroo and the Flames’ final prep work for Wednesday’s opener against the Oilers in Edmonton.

The letter made it official, but Brouwer’s leadership abilities became apparent as soon as the 31-year-old right-winger arrived in Calgary, his fourth NHL home after stints with the Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Capitals and St. Louis Blues.

“You get that feeling right from the start with a guy like that,” Giordano said. ”Some guys just have that swagger and that feel, you know what I mean? And he’s one of those guys. But along with that, he works hard in practice every day, he brings it on the ice during games. So he’s going to be an easy guy for other guys to look up to and follow.”

That was a big part of the appeal on Canada Day, when the Flames formally presented a four-year, US$18-million offer to Brouwer as an unrestricted free agent.

Of all the letter-wearers around the National Hockey League, he’s one of only four off-season movers already with an official leadership role in a new city. (The others? Milan Lucic in Edmonton, Shea Weber in Montreal and Andrew Ladd in Brooklyn.)

“We knew, going out to get Troy, that he was a leader, so that started way back,” Gulutzan said. “And when we did get him, we watched him through training camp and just how he interacts with his team, what type of presence he was in the locker-room and how guys looked to him.

“The other thing is, we’re in a bit of a transition. We’re going in a direction and he’s going to be with us for a while and he’s won a Stanley Cup and he’s played on some great teams and he was a great voice in our locker-room. So for me, it was a real easy pick.”

A great voice.

Sometimes, with a harsh message.

That part won’t change.

“I pride myself on being a leader, whether I have an ‘A’ or I don’t,” Brouwer said. “I’m very honoured that I was chosen to have one, but whether there’s a letter on my jersey, it doesn’t change the person or the player that I am or the attitude that I have and the approach that I have when I come to the rink.”

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